Muriel Spark is 'a wholly original presence in modern literature' (Andrew Motion). This collection, which contains all her published short stories together with some new writing, amply displays Muriel Spark's extraordinary talent; her cool, biting humour and unique vision of human nature. Ghosts and judges, priests, murder and French chateaux: all the Spark obsessions are here, and much more besides.

Contents:

• The Go-Away Bird
• The Curtain Blown by the Breeze
• Bang-Bang You're Dead
• The Seraph and the Zambezi
• The Pawnbroker's Wife
• The Snobs
• A Member of the Family
• The Fortune-Teller
• The Fathhers' Daughters
• Open to the Public
• The Dragon
• The Leaf-Sweeper
• Harper and Wilton
• The Executor
• Another Pair of Hands
• The Girl I left Behind Me
• Miss Pinkerton's Apocalypse
• The Pearly Shadow
• Going Up and Coming Down
• You Should Have Seen the Mess
• Quest for Lavishes Ghast
• The Young Man Who Discovered the Secret of Life
• Daisy Overrend
• The House of the Famous Poet
• The Playhouse Called Remarkable
• Chimes
• Ladies and Gentlemen
• Come Along, Marjorie
• The Twins
• 'A Sad Tale's Best for Winter'
• Christmas Fugue
• The First Year of My Life
• The Gentile Jewesses
• Alice Long's Dachshunds
• The Dark Glasses
• The Ormolu Clock
• The Portobello Road
• The Black Madonna
• The Thing About Police Stations
• A Hundred and Eleven Years Without a Chauffeur
• The Hanging Judge